Mini Steps to Becoming a Better Adult

Money Habits that Lead to Happiness

It’s so easy to have no idea where your money is going! I am super guilty of this.

Recently I listened to a live master class on how to spend your money on things that bring you happiness. The class was by Sarah Von Bargen, creator of the amazing blog Yes and Yes (because yes is more fun than no) and one of my fav bloggers.

Sarah shared some awesome tips and I was inspired to make a video based on her tips.

Money Habits that Lead to Happiness

If you aren’t a fan of cute, little stick figures, here’s what I share in the video.

As you get older you start to see the effects of your daily money choices. You can look around at your friends and see them progressing in the money/investments department. Buying houses, investing in shares, collecting savings. Meanwhile, you’re still living only slightly above the poverty line (or should I say “I”. I’m living slightly above the poverty line).

It can be hard not to compare yourself to the appearance of others’ lives, even if you have no desire to buy a cat themed house, the mind can play tricks on you. Have you ever thought about whether your spending is leading to happiness (or contentment), in the short and long-term?

Sarah says we subconsciously absorb ideas of what happiness looks like and never consider if those ideas are right for us. If you can get more specific about what makes you happy, it will be easier to find and add more of those things and more happiness to your everyday life. When you know what makes you happy, you can spend more time and money on the right stuff and less time and money on the wrong stuff.

Two awesome tips for spending money on happiness

Write a list of the things that make you happy.

Get super specific. Think of experiences, objects, relationships and interactions that make you happy. Whenever you have a happy experience, add it to the notes app in your phone. When you know what makes you happy, you can point your money in that direction.

Add up each category. How much money did you spend in the last month on things that made you happy? How much on the unavoidable? And how much did you spend on regrettable purchases?

It’s easy to have no idea where your money is going or how much of it is going towards things that make you happy. Getting clear can help you make future money choices that will contribute to the things that bring you joy.

Sarah has a personal finance course called Put Your Money Where Your Happy Is. It’s about spending your time and money on the things that bring you the most happiness. It’s only open certain times of the year, but I recommend checking it out! And definitely check out her website Yes and Yes!

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